STATCOUNTER

What’s in a name?

Describing a product with a different, unexpected set of words allows people to look at a taken-for-granted product in a fresh way. The new name (or new description) gets their attention and takes them into a different, unexpected direction. And suggesting a new, unexpected use for an old and familiar standby is a great technique also. Some products already capitalize on providing a wide variety of uses. WD40, for example.

And Arm & Hammer baking soda come to mind as offering more ways to use the product than you would think possible. It was certainly a stroke of marketing smarts to convince people to keep an open box of baking soda in the refrigerator, as an additional reason to purchase a box.

My all time favorite in the “call it by a new name” category was not created by a brand. Actually, I have no idea who came up with the notion. But someone took a look at Cheerios cereal and decided to promote them as, “Doughnut seeds.” This is thinking so far out of the (cereal) box as to be worthy of a marketing genius grant.

I used to see the doughnut seeds being sold, mostly at street fairs and farmers’ markets, and each time I saw them I found myself giving the smile that says, “Good idea.” And then sellers started improving on the original concept, using frosted cheerios to indicate they were seeds for glazed doughnuts. Or offering Fruit Loops, which promised to grow into various flavored doughnuts.

Can you think of a new, unexpected use for your product? Massage therapy for pets? Wireless printers that are also Internet radios? Calling your paper shredder a “Confetti maker”? A microwave/cooler combo?

See what happens when you try a new name, an unexpected positioning, extended usage…anything surprising and unanticipated.